archly

American  

[ahrch-lee] / ˈɑrtʃ li /

adverb

1. in an arch or roguish manner.

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Other Word Forms

• unarchly adverb

Etymology

Origin of archly

First recorded in 1655–65; arch ² + -ly

Explanation

If you say something archly, you express it in a teasing sort of way. When someone acts archly toward you, it might offend you a bit, or it might make you laugh. You act archly when you put on an affected style of speech, or say something that's playfully sarcastic. You might archly dismiss a teacher's criticism of your work or smile archly as you tease a friend. The adverb comes from the 1500s adjective arch, which originally meant "chief," but was so often used to describe a "knave" or "rogue" that by the 17th century it came to mean "mischievous" or "saucy."

Example Sentences

As Ganz archly observed, “the word for the politics that makes a pastiche of past glories to create a new type of regime is ‘fascism.'”

From Salon • Sep. 10, 2025

Writing in Reforma newspaper, columnist Denise Dresser archly compared the election to a long-planned gala that no one attends.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 2, 2025

Her song, the archly titled I Wrote A Song, was a bubbly pop anthem that won approval from fans - but lacklustre staging and a problematic vocal performance torpedoed her chances.

From BBC • Feb. 29, 2024

More archly, he added, “Can you imagine now, if we just blasted her on Twitter? Would that be fair? This is my point. It’s insane.”

From New York Times • Oct. 20, 2022

“Now that one is entirely new,” she said archly, sounding for a moment like her normal self.

From "The Name of the Wind" by Patrick Rothfuss